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Proposal Would Spin Off Northeast Corridor Service From Amtrak

NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 08: People board an Amtrak train on February 8, 2011 at Penn Station in New York City. Amtrak, a government-owned corporation, has joined up with New Jersey's two U.S. senators to propose a new rail link to New York City under the Hudson River. The "Gateway Project", which was formally proposed on Monday, would include two tunnels under the Hudson River and increase the train traffic under the river from 62 trains per day to 92 and cost an estimated $13.5 billion. This plan is looked at as an alternative after New Jersey Governor Chris Christie killed another rail link plan last year after he deemed it too costly to New Jersey residents. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)(File: Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

By JOAN LOWY, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) _ Congress would take away Amtrak’s popular Northeast corridor train service and invite private investors to bid for the right to develop high-speed rail under a plan outlined by a key House Republican Thursday.

The densely populated corridor — which extends from Washington to Boston, including service to New York and Philadelphia– is the most viable region in the country for truly high-speed trains averaging speeds better than 110 mph, said House Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman John Mica, R-Fla.

But Amtrak has failed to provide fast service despite tens of billions of dollars in federal aid, he said while outlining his plan at a hearing.

Amtrak’s Acela trains reach speeds over 150 mph in some portions of the corridor. But Mica said trip times average only 83 mph between Washington and New York and 72 mph between New York and Boston. His calculations include wait times at station stops along the route, which lowers the average speed. Some trains in Europe and Asia achieve speeds over 200 mph.

Last year, Amtrak proposed a plan to upgrade its Northeast corridor track and trains and to eliminate bottlenecks so that trains can travel up to 220 mph. Trip time between Washington and New York would be reduced to 96 minutes and between New York and Boston to 93 minutes. But the plan would be phased in over 30 years and cost $117 billion to implement.

That’s not good enough, said Mica, a longtime Amtrak critic. He wants to take away the rail company’s 363 miles of track and infrastructure, place it under the control of the Department of Transportation or a new government-created corporation, and solicit bids from private investors for the development, operation and maintenance of high speed service.

The plan in will be incorporated in a long-term transportation spending bill the committee is drafting and expects to introduce around mid-June, Mica said.

“I believe that we have great potential in the Northeast corridor,” Mica said. “The only thing standing in the way is Amtrak or the federal government or Congress.”

Rep. John Duncan, R-Tenn., chairman of the highway subcommittee, said Mica’s plan probably has enough support from Republicans to pass the House, but it is unlikely to be accepted by the Senate.

Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., a leading Amtrak supporter, warned in testimony at the hearing that potential Northeast corridor investors will want a profit, which means ticket prices would likely increase.

Mica’s plan “hasn’t begun to get any legs to stand on as I see it,” he told reporters afterwards. He said the plan would amount to a “death potion” for the transportation spending bill, which pays for highway and transit construction.

Amtrak is a private corporation, but it depends on federal subsidies. Amtrak is in debt to the federal government for about $4 billlion.

Amtrak was created by Congress in 1971 to provide passenger train service between cities after passenger railroads failed in the face of competition from airlines and interstate highway travel. But with the U.S. population expected to exceed 400 million people by 2050, nightmarish congestion is forecast for the nation’s already crowded highways and airports.

President Barack Obama has said he wants to put high-speed intercity trains within reach of 80 percent of the American public by 2025, but he has run up against resistance from Republican governors and members of Congress who say the nation can’t afford the cost.

I take Amtrak from Ct to DC frequently.The Northeast gets the leftovers as far as equipment. They are always having issues with the engines breaking down and if you leave out of Htfd then you have a delay in New Haven while they switch from diesel to electric. Last month my 5 yr old granddaughter visited me for her spring vacation. I arranged to meet her Mom (my daughter) in Philly to return her then they would go on to DC and I would return to Ct. They had problems getting the engine restarted at Penn Station in NYC. They finally got it started and we made it all the way to Newark where the engine died and was pronounced. We were all ushered off the train, down into the station and up to another track with me dragging a 5 yr old, her suitcase, her Hello Kitty bag with her DVD player in it and her car seat. We were split into two groups depending on our final destination and put onto trains with standing room only. We stood from Newark to Philly. While this is not the first time I have run into difficulties with the Northeast Regional it was certainly the most aggravating. I would love to see someone come in and upgrade the equipment and the service. I went again a couple of weeks ago and I drove down…I missed being able to relax and let someone else do the driving while I play with my computer or read a book but unless something is done to make the service more reliable then I guess driving is the way to go.